[2.] Positively. Tiie chiefest excellencies are —
(1.) His holiness. So we are to imitate God, who is a pure and holy being, and is also ' holy in all his ways, and righteous in all his
VeR. 1.] SERMONS UPON EPHESIANS V. 171
works.' Ps. cxlv. 17. So we must have a dhnne nature, and live and walk in a godlike manner : ' Be holy in all manner of conversation ;' and live at tlie greatest distance from and abhorrence of sin as may be. That God is holy, his laws show it, which are very pure ; his work& siiow it, botli internal on the heart of man : Eph. iv. 24, 'And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.' The new man is created after God, and that causeth a giving back. When sin is propounded to us, we cannot easily bring^ the heart to it : 1 John iii. 9, ' Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him ; and he cannot sin, because- he is born of God.' By tlie seed of God he meaneth the nature of God,, or that grace he puts into us. So also his external works, his punishing^ sin, especially in his own children. His severity in punishing is seen in the remarkable instances of his displeasure. Now we must hate- what God hateth, and love what God loveth ; for our nature doth most sensibly bewray itself by its affections, both of choice and aver- sation ; and in some measure we must have the same nature that God hath.
(2.) His goodness ; for ' God is love,' 1 John iv. 8. He showeth his. benignity to all his creatures, but much more to us in our redemption by Christ. It was well observed by CEcolampadius in his lectures to the youth and children at Basil, that the ordinary pictures of God and the devil were no good books to instruct children in the nature of either. The truest representation that can be made of God would be to teacli them what truth is, what love, mercy, and goodness is ; and the truest picture of Satan Avould be to teach them the true characters of falsehood, malice, hatred, cruelty, envy. Well, then, we must imitate God in goodness.
Two acts there are of God's goodness — giving and forgiving.
(1st.) His giving, or bounty to all necessitous creatures, especially mankind, especially in their great necessities of guilt and misery, in ])roviding so ample and suitable a remedy for them. Oh, what pity should this stir up in us to the bodies and souls of men, and make us ready to commiserate and do good to all, most especially to the house- hold of faith I What hath God been doing on the theatre and stage of the world for almost six thousand years, but doing good? Acts xiv. 17, 'Nevertheless he left not himself without a witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our liearts with food and gladness.' And is this your Father, and will you not imitate him ? Surely goodness should be the very constitution of our souls, and doing good the business of our lives.
(2d) Forgiving. Some works of God are to be believed, not imi- tated, as the creation of the woikl ; and some not only believed, but imitated, as tlie forgiving of sins. Our wrongs done to God are greater than the wrongs others do to us. Others owe us but pence, and we owe God talents ; their debt to us is a hundred pence, and our debt to God is ten thousand talents. Mat. xviii. 24, 28. A talent is an hundred imd eighty-seven pounds ten shillings. Now God freely for- gives all our offences ; therefore we must forgive freely, fully, heartily, and that out of a sense of the Lord's kindness. However the world deal with you, and behave themselves towards you, do not you follow
172 SERMONS Ul'ON KPHKSIANS V. [SlCK. I,
tlicm to do the like ; for you are not to fashion yourselves accordin^^ to this world, Eom. xii. 2 ; but ' be ye followei's of God, as dear cldldreu.' And therefore you are not to reward evil with evil, but to do good, even to enemies. This is to be like God, at whose table all his enemies are maintained, and without whom they cainiot subsist one moment.
II. What provision God hath made that we may be followers of him.
1. He hath given us his word to stamp his image upon our souls. We see much of his goodness in creation and providence, but not so much as we do in his word ; nor in any })ait of his word so much as in liis gospel : 2 Cor. iv. 4, ' Lest the light of the glorious gospel of Chi-ist, who is the image of God, should shine upon them.' The image of God is on Christ primarily, and then on his seed, which representeth Christ to us, to beget holiness and love in us. God giveth his word, wherein there is so much discovered both of his love and holiness. The im})res- sion is according to the stamp. That which is hot communicateth heat ; that which is cold, cold. Wit by communication causeth wit, and common learning common learning. So an holy and comfortable doc- trine breedeth in us a spirit of holiness and goodness. There is much in the objects we are commonly conversant about.